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Ice Bucket Challenge

So the tree is up at Dröm House and the Christmas party beckons this weekend. The festive season is in full swing and everyone is looking forward to two weeks of eating, drinking and enjoying themselves!

Christmas Tree in the Dröm UK Showroom

But don’t forget, it is still important to look after yourself during the holidays. Wellbeing should be an important, regular part of your regime throughout Christmas. It is easy to say that the diet and gym sessions will start in the New Year but if wellbeing is a habit all year round, then looking after yourself at Christmas will be second nature and the effects of all that eating and drinking won’t be so difficult to shift in January!

Utilise the sauna to help sweat out the toxins that have built up during the excesses of the Christmas season, but bear in mind it is NOT a cure for a hangover as it will dehydrate you even more. The best time to sauna bathe in this case is the day AFTER recovering from the hangover. Remember to always drink plenty of water to replace fluids and minerals lost during bathing.

Don’t forget to cool down as part of your thermal bathing experience. Snow and ice are ideal ways of cooling off (see our previous post ‘Don’t Sweat the Ice Bucket Challenge’), so let’s hope we get to enjoy a White Christmas this year!

Enjoying a sauna or steam bath will also help to reduce the stress levels caused by battling the hordes of Christmas shoppers all looking for that perfect present, or from various family demands or even from having to get everything done before finishing for the Christmas break at work. Add a drop or two of your favourite essential oil to relax or rejuvenate you for that perfect bathing experience. Essential oils also make great Christmas presents …… ! (Dröm UK stock a range of Kicki Carlsson Essential Oils in Lavender, Pine Needle, Eucalyptus, Lemon and Grapefruit. Call 01932 355655 for more details).

Kicki Carlsson Essential Oils

However you celebrate this year, stay well, stay safe and have a very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy 2015!

How many of us are watching our Facebook feeds with trepidation as we wait for the dreaded ice bucket challenge nomination?!

But how many of us know how effective ice baths and cold treatments can be for our health and wellbeing?

Reviving and repairing tired, aching muscles after exercise is an incredibly important part of any athlete’s training regime and spending a short time immersed in an ice bath after exercise helps muscles and tissue recover faster.

The ice constricts the blood vessels which in turn decreases metabolism and reduces any inflammation and pain and flushes lactic acid and waste products from the affected tissues. Blood flow increases as the body then warms up, speeding up circulation and improving the healing process by returning waste products to the lymphatic system.

Using an ice cave or plunge pool in a spa after a sauna bathing session is an increasingly popular way of cooling down as the wellbeing benefits of alternating hot and cold treatments become more widespread.

Even just having a cold shower has a major impact on your health and wellbeing. The increase in metabolism, caused by the body trying to warm itself, up can activate the immune system which can reduce our susceptibility to colds and flu. Cold water can also stimulate noradrenaline in our brains which can help alleviate depression. Another benefit is that the cold water can tighten pores thereby reducing blockages in the skin that can lead to spots. Constriction of the muscles in the cold helps the lymphatic system work more effectively, and the increased rush of blood through the body can invigorate and energise you.

So when that nomination pings into your news feed, remember, the cold and ice will actually make you feel good, as you do good by donating to a worthy cause!